


True Skin

by xmencomicsmarvel



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-10
Updated: 2014-08-28
Packaged: 2018-02-12 15:38:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2115435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xmencomicsmarvel/pseuds/xmencomicsmarvel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Based on the episode "Second Skin," Season 3, Episode 5.</p>
<p>The Obsidian Order knew that they would lose the war with Bajor. Tain decides to disguise hundreds of Cardassians as Bajorans and manipulate their memories.</p>
<p>However, what lies ahead is not by Tain's design alone.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

The space station known as Deep Space Nine had known a different name: Terok Nor. That name marked a different time, a time when a Bajoran could never walk the station’s Promenade without the express permission of a Cardassian Gul, and a time where no one aboard would dare attract suspicion to themselves, for fear of the Obsidian Order.

Unbeknownst to the vast majority of Bajorans, the Obsidian Order had even infiltrated the highest ranks of their resistance. This, of course, created an unbearable smugness within Central Command.

However, unbeknown to the the vast majority of Cardassians, including Central Command, the Obsidian Order was already preparing for the Cardassian's defeat.

Their planet was expending too many soldiers to possibly keep up with the resistance fighters whilst still being secure within their own borders. If they lost more battalions at the rate they were now then the Klingons or the Romulans could possibly consider them a worthy target for an invasion. No, the war would soon be called to an end. In a few years, more than likely.

Tain had been considering their options for some time, thinking of the possible ways that they would still launch a second attempt and ensure success then, until it occurred to him. It occurred to Tain that no Cardassian had ever really lived as a proud Bajoran would, with their previously lush, green farmlands which they had relied on, or their strong, religious community's beliefs. If a Cardassian could live within a community, then surely they could also tear down a community when the time came to strike.

There were issues with this, of course. No Cardassian could possibly take living on a Bajoran settlement or in a Bajoran Province so soon after the war had ended, if they would even be allowed to stay there, which was hardly likely given the circumstances.

Then it caused Tain to think: what if they were unaware of their Cardassian heritage? It would certainly eliminate any sense of hatred or guilt they may get when living among their enemies. The Obsidian Order had done similar actions before, but this time operatives would be left behind long after any official Cardassian soil was on Bajoran soil. No Cardassian, no matter how loyal, would agree to that.

“Forcible Volunteering” it was, then.

It took Tain only a few hours to make the necessary arrangements.

Terok Nor, in a matter of merely a year, was an entirely different place. The buildings themselves may have been the same, the architecture Cardassian throughout, but deep down it had truly become a point of Bajoran pride. Bashir himself couldn’t believe that it had only been around two years since he had arrived. His friend and tailer, Kalum Gustar, appeared to be much in agreement.

“It is amazing what a coat of paint and the discovery of the Celestial Temple can do to a drab and dark little station, isn’t it?” There was a slight twinkle in his friends eyes as he lightly joked to Bashir.

Shakaar Deion walked past with his friend Shakaar Danoel in tow.

“Good evening, gentlemen.”Shakaar Deion spoke cooly, not looking in the direction of the tailer.

“It was.” The ignored tailer supplied before being not so subtly nudged by the doctor. Deion and Danoel refused to acknowledge his response, walking to Deion's jewellery store where the two would no doubt spend another evening.

“You could be nicer, you know.” Julian watched Kalum Gustar shrug nonchalantly, not seeming to care that the two Bajorans couldn’t stand him.

“Shakaar and I have never gotten along, Doctor. Not when we were children, nowt now. Why, we didn't even hold a single polite conversation during our efforts to bring down the Cardassians! If there was no hope then, then it must be a lost cause. As for that lackey of his, well, Shakaar Danoel has been absurdly loyal to Shakaar Deion almost from the moment they met. If hi own sense couldn’t persuade him to separate himself from that tasteless, trinket selling fool, then I doubt that any effort on my part will soften his prejudice towards me.” Bashir gave his companion a look, narrowing his eyes in disapproval.

While the doctor did realise that the three men would never exactly be friends, he thought that they should at least make an effort to be civil to one another, now that Bajor finally had a chance to thrive on its own.

“Deion- thats an odd choice of name, isn't it?”

“Yes, it means “Destroyer,” which I must confess even he doesn't seem to warrant that kind of label. Your last name should surely bring out your best qualities, or at least mean something positive. Danoel means “Rejoice,” and Gustar means-”

“Warmth?” Julian guessed.

“Very good, doctoR! Im impressed! Someone has been practising their Bajoran. I do hope that you’ll keep it up.” Julian blushed at Gustar's suggestive gaze.

“Well, I do have the best teacher.”

“Oh, Julian, really, such flattery! Still, I think your pronunciation could use some fine tuning, perhaps a trip to my quarters tonight? I do have a bottle of Bajoran spring wine somewhere. Perhaps we could discuss that poetry from the ancient Vedeks that I sent you. They are essential reading if one wants true insight into the prophecies, and indeed perhaps Bajoran faith as a whole.” Julian nodded along whilst the flirtatious tailer led him by the earn to his own quarters for spring wine, discussion, and whatever else happened to take hold.

The Shakaars, as they were now affectionately called by Jadzia Dazx, soon followed by most of the Starfleet operatives on board deep Space Nine, were sitting down to an equally stimulating conversation. Their conversation, however, concerned mainly battle tactics.

“Deion, you are far too impulsive! If we had attacked that Cardassian base as you’re suggesting we should have, an entire team of brave Bajorans could have been lost, with nothing gained to add insult to injury!” Danoel's words were passionate, but held no great ire towards his friend. Both he and Deion had suffered great lost, far greater than Kalum could ever had experienced. Losing your wife and children at once and worst still, not knowing if they were still alive, perhaps never knowing, was the worst thing imaginable. Deion had become at times rash and vengeful, whilst Danoel had become wary and contemplative.

“Danoel, don’t you see? All we needed was the opportunity and huge numbers of Cardassian causalities would have been caused in a matter of hours!” Deion seemed to revel in his own apparent brilliance for a moment or two, before taking another generous glass of spring wine. After finishing it, he reached for the bottle again. Danoel stopped his hand.

Deion seemed to pause, looking Danoel in the eyes before laughing. Deion stood up from his chair in the small shop that he rented on the Promenade.

They were sitting in a relatively tiny corner of the shop itself, where Deion would sit with the customers and convince them to purchase as much of the jewellery as he could. He mostly sold Bajoran earrings, even mending and replacing parts on occasion. He found that he had a talent for convincing people to do things that they would normally never do and he used this to his advantage. However, Danoel was not always so responsive and submissive as he found others to be. That, he often thought, was perhaps what most attracted him to Danoel in the first place. That and his unerring loyalty.

“Danoel, forgive me. As always, you’re right. What do you say about us taking this conversation to my quarters, rather than stay here?” As he usually id, Danoel smiled and stood up, taking Deion's hand in his.

Unbeknownst to all on deep space nine, and on Bajor, the apparently 'retired' Enabram Tain sat at his desk, speaking to the new head of the Obsidian Order.

“We need to call back all foot soldiers on Bajor.” It was an order spoken with confidence, the self assuredness that was completely Tain in origin. Very few people could order such powerful men around with such ease, but Tain himself was hardly powerless, having practically moulded the Obsidian Order in his won image.

The plan was to be enacted soon. The Cardassians would be lured off the station once plans had begun to abduct those who were on Bajor. It couldn’t be all at one, a few at a time, so as not to arouse suspicion, at least until ti was too late. Once the government figured out what they were doing they would surely stop at nothing in order to discover these operatives for themselves and take them from the places where they could do the most damage.

However, when the time came, all of the Deep Space Nine operatives would be taken and held together.

The facility was of Tain's own design, meant to house those finally coming home to Cardassia whilst their memories were revealed to both the Central Command and the Obsidian order. It would keep them in a safe environment to console the families, whilst also keeping them locked inside in a secure area, safe from the sympathies of those vulnerable families who might try to help them escape.

“Does this mean that he'll be coming home soon?” The housekeeper sat in the doorway, only speaking when Tain had ended the call.

“Yes, Mila. Soon, Garak will be back home with us. Back where he belongs.” That was what a weak man would say, Tain thought.

He gave her a reassuring smile, and the smile that she returned warmed his chest at the sight. It was at times like this that he though that he might do anything for her, risk anything for her. His warnings to Garak about the dangers of attachment were well informed.

“I don’t remember inviting you to listen to my conversation.” Mila frowned at him, but said nothing. Tain busied himself with other plans whilst she cleaned his office, feeling satisfied as he could feel himself coming out of retirement for one last time.


	2. Plans Unfolded

Deep Space Nine's by this time famous Promenade was once again busy almost to the point of over-capacity by Odo's standards. He frowned at the new arrivals, the known crooks, the unknowns with a particular glint of suspicion. He might not know them all by name, nor even from what planet they came from. He only knew to trust none of them.

He saw Kira walking bellow him as he looked from Jake and Nog's favourite spot. Odo wondered whether or not he should talk to her. He often found himself finding excuses to talk to the Major, especially these past few months, as he came to accept his feelings for her. Perhaps he could discuss some of the more worrying arrivals with her? Or even one of the regular offenders, like Quark?

Odo looked at her closely. She seemed to be tense. Odo knew that look on her face, knew the set in her shoulders. Something was very wrong, or at least on the verge of being very wrong. Odo leapt down as Kira passed him, his Changeling abilities allowing him to land without injury. Kira turned around, hearing Odo walking up to her. She gave him a terse smile, but waited for him to ask her what was wrong.

“What seems to be the problem, Major?” Kira snorted, running a hand through her hair. She through the hand back down to her side, looking around at anyone who might be listening in to their conversation.

“Kai Winn has asked to see the bridge crew and Captain Sisko in the War Room. She sounded concerned, though for all we know she’s just using it as an excuse to complain about the Emissary.” It was true that Kai Winn had made almost no effort to hide her dislike for Sisko. Then again, she had made it no secret that she despised Starfleet in almost equal measure.

Odo had noticed that many of the Vedeks were tense, some no coming out of the temples on the station. Others had taken to shouting prophesy to passers by. They usually drew in at least some kind of crowd as a result, though not today. It seemed that this time the people on the Promenade had chosen a new attraction to gawk at.

The owner of the Jewellery store, Shakaar Deion, and the owner of the tailors, Kalum Gustar, were arguing in the street. It was too far away for either Kira or Odo to see before, much to Odo's chagrin, but the crowd that was developing around the two as their argument grew in tandem finally drew their attention. Shakaar was balling his fists at his sides and extending his neck as his face went right up to Kalum's. Kalum had his hands placed firmly on Shakaar's shoulders, not quite trying to push him back, but clearly setting a boundary which Shakaar would no doubt soon cross.

Kira looked towards Odo, the unspoken question of who exactly should deal with who on her face. They didn't have much time. As they were about to speak Shakaar increased his volume until the entire Promenade must have heard him clearly.

“You need to keep out of my business! I don’t tell every customer that comes into my shop to buy their fabric and clothes from anyone! If I was, it certainly wouldn’t be charlatan like-”

“I merely suggested that her time might be better served if she was to buy one of the cheaper necklaces from the new Bajoran-”

“If you think that shouting loud enough to disturb the entire station is the way to solve a disagreement, I think you’ll find that you are sorely mistaken.” Shakaar turned around to see Odo's hand on his shoulder. Shakaar turned around and held up his hands in a gesture of clear submission.

Kira was holding Kalum's left arm, pulling him backwards, talking quietly into his ear. Kalum seemed to want to argue his point to Shakaar, but acquiesced and allowed himself to be led away by the Major.

With the Major gone, probably asking Kalum his version of events, Odo allowed Shakaar to recite his own tale. One thing which struck Odo was Deion's love of talking, seemingly to the point of never wanting there to be a quiet moment that isn’t filled with the sound of his voice. He also seemed to enjoy trying to fool others. Charismatic, but often insincere. So familiar, Odo couldn’t help but think. He was almost like a Cardassian, one Cardassian in particular, although Odo knew better than to say anything, especially to a man who had apparently lost his entire family during the occupation. Of course, Dukat was well known to have been taken back to Cardassia just a year or two before the end of the war.

Odo had to admit to himself, however, that the resemblance to Dukat was almost striking, especially in the eyes. It almost made him wonder.

Deion, by this point, was merely trying to avoid getting thrown in one of the cells by security. It would be a shame to have Danoel come and bail him out. Fortunately for him, Odo appeared to have lost interest in petty squabble between to humanoids who had been enemies since who only knew when. Deion listened attentively to the stern warnings of further action if he dint learn his lesson, fretfully apologized to Odo and the crowd when appropriate, even offering to apologize to Gustar when he returned to his own shop.

At seeing Danoel hurrying towards him, he politely excused himself from Odo and the crowd, Odo seeming far more concerned with something more pressing. Unusual, by the constable's own strict standards, but Deion dint much care to involve himself in whatever had gotten Odo so distracted.

After giving Danoel a friendly embrace, thus assuring the crowd that he meant no further harm to anyone, in his own mind anyway, Danoel appeared to look his friend over for injury.

“I'm glad you’re alright.” Danoel rushed out, sighing quietly afterwards. The crowd behind them was dispersing, partly because they had lost interest, though mostly because Odo was moving them along. Danoel was trying to think of the least antagonistic place they could go, where they could talk.

“My quarters or yours?” Deion asked, a glint in his eyes. Danoel gestured to Deion, indicating that his quarters would perhaps be better. A neutral location, that Danoel could leave if Deion wished him to.

As the two began to walk off, Kira caught up with Odo.

“So, I'm pretty sure Kalum Gustar won't be pressing any charges. Shakaar Danoel seems to have everything covered with Shakaar Deion. Why don't we head to that meeting before Kai Winn feels the need to demand our jobs?” The two began to walk to the War room, when something occurred to Odo.

“Why is it that, whenever Shakaar Deion does something like this, creates a public scene, that no one seems to want to press charges? I know that Kalum Gustar and Shakaar Deion haven’t got on since before they can remember, as they tell everyone! If anything, logically, he should be demanding that I press charges against him of some kind, but never. No one had ever taken anything he’s done as anything more than a temporary lapse of judgement.” Kira seemed to consider this as she walked.

“It's not that simple, Odo. He lost his entire family.”

“Many people lost their families during the occupation, Major. You yourself lost nearly your entire family, but you don't act like Shakaar Deion.”

“People don’t react in just one way to trauma, Odo! We all have different ways of coping, I have my work, my memories of my family, my memories with the resistance. Kalum Gustar seems to be more at peace with Julian, Danoel seems to cope by looking after Deion, but Deion?” Kira paused, looking away from Odo. “Some people find it difficult to cope, or cant find a way to cope with what's happened to them.” Odo looked at Kira before nodding.

“I understand. As long as he doesn’t do anything violent, I'll try to give him the benefit of the doubt.” Kira smiled widely, walking closer to Odo while they walked through the doors leading to the War Room.

As Kira feared, they were late. Every other bridge crew member was already sitting down. The only other person standing was Kai Winn, her impatient frown prominent, her eyes boring into Kira's.

“So glad to see, Major, that you could time out of your busy schedule to assist your Kai in a matter of such great importance. I hope that I haven’t inconvenienced you too greatly.” Kira straightened up at Kai Winn's reproach, taking a deep breath in preparation.

“Not at all. I apologise for our lateness, there was in incident on the Promenade which required our immediate attention.”

“Both of your attentions?”

“Yes, Kai Winn.” With that, the Kai nodded. “Very well, sit down. I've come to ask for this station's help, for Starfleet's help. Over the past week the number of disappearances had grown expectationally, in fact, the numbers of disappearances have literally tripled since the end of the occupation.” The Kai looked away from Captain Sisko's gaze, staring at the table. “Back then, your neighbours could disappear overnight, you’d never see them again. People are seeing it happen again and they are scared, Captain. The more people that disappear, the more noticeable this phenomenon will become, I want you and your crew to find out why this is happening to my people after peace for this long!” The Kai drew back from the table, walking over to the window that looked out towards the wormhole. She placed one of her hands on the glass, reaching out to her gods for an answer.

The Captain looked to his bridge crew for answers. Jadzia was already coming up with different ways that they could scan Bajor for possible anomalies. Odo was silent, but Sisko knew that after the Kai had gone that he would soon be contacting his own links to the less than savoury world of Bajor. Kira was already preparing to talk to the Bajoran militia for any help that they could provide with what was happening, as well as providing them with any of Starfleet's findings on the incidents.

“We'll do whatever we can, but before we get started, Starfleet will want complete honest from the Bajoran government, and from you. I would advise you to be candid, at least if you want something done.” Sisko wouldn’t put anything past Kai Win, who had on multiple occasions proved herself to be an untrustworthy leader at best.

The Kai looked affronted, but said nothing. After that, the Kai's goodbye was perhaps even cooler than usual.

Odo had already left to make use of his contacts, but Julian was the first out of the bridge crew. He knew that he couldn’t be much help with this case, unless any of the missing persons turned out to be injured, or the disappearances were somehow linked to an illness. The best thing he could do, he thought, was utilise this time to the fullest by spending time with Gustar during this rarely peaceful time. He knew that any day now he would be called up to do the most dangerous missions that anyone else in his field were doing, not to mention the most time consuming and stressful. Jadzia frequently told him, upon realising that his relationship with the tailer was getting serious, that the key to a good relationship was time together, enjoying each other’s company.

He rushed down to the Promenade, his shift being over, finding Kalum's familiar shop, lights still on, door unlocked. He walked inside, knowing that Kalum wouldn’t mind his presence, even if he only had time for a short visit before ushering him out. However, no matter what happened, Kalum never left his shop open and unattended, yet here was the shop, not a single person in sight. A role of fabric had been dropped to the floor, Julian having noticed it, picked it up, only to discover that it was Tholian silk, far too expensive for his tailer to just casually lay on the ground.

He walked into the back of the shop, but still nothing. Julian wondered what could have possibly led to Kalum abandoning his shop. He worried. Kalum and Shakaar Deion were always getting into fights, though they mostly stayed verbal, as opposed to physical. Perhaps they had gotten into an argument and been arrested? It wasn't out of the realm of possibility, though surely Kalum would have asked for lock to close his shop, or at least lock it up until he got back. Julian could see this leading to another argument about tolerating those who they didn’t get along with.

Julian closed up the shop, using the code that Kalum had entrusted him with in case of emergencies. He half walked, half jogged to Odo's office, giving the man a tired look.

“Okay, what's he don’t now?” When Odo merely looked at him questioningly, Julian continued. “Kalum Gustar, he's in one of your cells. If he needs to be bailed out, I can pay for it, but please release him. If he’s been fighting with Shakaar again-”

“As a matter of fact he has, but he was not arrested, Doctor. The cells are empty.” Julian was beginning to become less concerned about the safety of Kalum's shop, and more for the uncertain safety of the tailer himself. Odo seemed to have a realisation, because he turned around. “Computer, locate Kalum Gustar.”

Julian only half heard the words from the computer, saying that Kalum was no where on the station. He allowed Odo to lead him to the bridge. He allowed Captain Sisko to reassure him that everything would be alright as he barked orders left and right. He allowed Jadzia to give him a hug, though he barely felt it.

Gustar was gone, and with him any hope of peace until Julian knew exactly where he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks everyone for reading! :) Sorry for any mistakes, I don't, as yet, have a beta. Thank you to everyone who has left Kudos, I really appreciate your support! :)

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first time publishing on an Archive account, so I hope it all goes well. :) Thank you for any comments you have about what I've written.


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